Christmas in July?

Yes it sounds bizarre to think about Christmas in July, doesn’t it. And yet, year after year the stores start decorating earlier and earlier so that all the fall holidays blend together. I remember when I was a kid and September signaled the beginning of the school year. Shopping was all about school supplies, backpacks, clothes, and shoes. I never saw Halloween decorations or candy until we were well into October. Thanksgiving was promoted in November and the Christmas season actually started the day after Thanksgiving.

Flash forward to today. We barely get the kids off to school the day after Labor Day, September 7^th, and then September 8^th out comes the Halloween costumes, decorations, candy, makeup, pumpkins and more. I don’t know what the rush is, but ok I can accept all the Halloween displays, even if they are out early. But, then the week after that, and right next to the Halloween stuff, is a section with Thanksgiving decorations, paper dishes, napkins and so on.

But wait, by the end of September I start to see Christmas decorations! Trees, lights, ornaments, join the Halloween and Thanksgiving merchandise on the shelves. I love the holidays, but I like to take them on one at a time. Someone had the wisdom to space them out, about a month apart, on the calendar for a reason. So I am considering that maybe it would be easier to just combine all three holidays into one big celebration where anything goes and we can get them all over with at once. Here’s how my new Holiday, Hallothanksma’s, would be celebrated: costumes from each holiday would be represented, turkey, pilgrims, Indians, witches, vampires, ghosts, santas, reindeer and elves. Santa carries a huge pumpkin filled with toys and candy and rides in a sleigh pulled by 8 flying turkeys: Gobbler, Clucker, Coocooer, Pecker, Fowler, Winger, Comber and Jonathan (who has a red light-up beak). And for dinner, a nice traditional meal of a glazed ham with candy corn on the side!

Maybe it’s just me, but I would like to enjoy each holiday before having to think about and prepare for the next one. Commercialization is causing them all to blend into one another so we can hardly distinguish between them. I wish there was a way to get that across to retailers. If we don’t stop the madness we may soon see the Easter Bunny wearing a red suit, carrying a pumpkin in one hand, a candy filled heart in the other and saying “Gobble, gobble“!